The institutional politics of the European Union's rule of law crisis

The implementation of the EU’s provisions regarding the rule of law as enshrined in Article 7 of the Amsterdam Treaty always had the potential for political contestation. The emergence of illiberal governments and subsequent challenges to the primacy of EU law has galvanised such debates. This chapter examines the institutional politics and inter-institutional tensions arising from the need for interpretation and implementation of the EU’s various rule of law measures. The chapter considers the role of party politics and political contestation concerning Art. 7 as well as soft law instruments, consultative mechanisms and infringement procedures. First, the response to the crisis of the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council is being discussed. In the second stage, the chapter charts the outcome of the key inter-institutional relations – between Council and Commission, EP and Commission and EP and Council – before arriving at an overall assessment of the institutional politics of the EU’s response to the rule of law crisis. The chapter concludes with an outlook on future developments in this field on the basis of the preceding analysis.